Gregory S. McNeal
Biography
Gregory S. McNeal, JD/PhD, is a Professor of Law and Public Policy at Pepperdine University and a nationally recognized scholar of law and technology. He teaches Internet Law, Privacy Law, Criminal Procedure, and courses examining the legal, regulatory, and ethical challenges posed by technologies across a range of domains, from surveillance and national security to emerging technology and entrepreneurship. His unique insights into the field come from his experience as the award-winning founder of a venture-backed technology company and an investor and advisor to startups.
Professor McNeal’s research explores the legal and institutional frameworks that govern emerging technologies. His current and future scholarship spans topics such as AI, drones and aerial surveillance, algorithmic decision-making, platform governance, data privacy, and technology regulation. His articles have appeared in the Georgetown Law Journal (winner of an article of the year award), the Texas Law Review, the George Washington Law Review, the Washington and Lee Law Review, and the Tulane Law Review, among others.
He has testified before the United States Senate and House of Representatives on multiple occasions on issues involving privacy, drones, aerial surveillance, and innovation policy. He has advised the White House, federal agencies, state legislatures, and municipalities and has served on multiple federal rulemaking committees related to emerging technology. He also served as Chair of the Emerging Technology Working Group for the Regulatory Transparency Project and as Reporter for the Uniform Law Commission’s Tort Law Relating to Drones Act.
He co-founded AirMap, a digital air traffic management platform recognized by Fast Company as one of the World’s Most Innovative Companies, recipient of an Inc.com 25 Most Disruptive Companies award, a Consumer Electronics Show Innovation Award, and the Los Angeles Business Journal’s Patrick Soon Shiong Innovation Award. He currently serves as Chairman of the Board of SailPlan, an AI-driven maritime emissions, clean tech and efficiency company. He has advised technology firms across the software, aerospace, defense, AI, blockchain, and autonomous systems sectors, and has raised over $100 million from investors such as Microsoft, Qualcomm, Airbus, Sony, Flexport, and Greycroft among others.
His commentary on law and technology has appeared in more than 200 media outlets, including CNN, MSNBC, Fox News, Bloomberg, NPR, The New York Times, Scientific American, and The Washington Post, among many others. He frequently provides analysis on issues such as artificial intelligence, privacy, transportation technologies, cybersecurity, antitrust, and technology policy and writes at Politechly.
Before entering academia, Professor McNeal served as a communications and technology officer in the United States Army where he led teams responsible for secure military communications networks that supported more than 10,000 users. His work included managing fiber optic, microwave, and satellite systems, overseeing secure messaging infrastructure, directing recovery after major cyber incidents, and supervising soldiers and civilians through high-tempo operations. These experiences strengthened his expertise in cybersecurity, network operations, and the technical foundations of modern communications systems, which continue to inform his teaching and research.
Professor McNeal is admitted to practice in the District of Columbia and is a Certified Information Privacy Manager (CIPM).
Education
- Ph.D., Pennsylvania State University
- J.D., Case Western Reserve University
- M.P.A., American University
- B.A., Lehigh University
Topics
- Technology
- Entrepreneurship
- Public Policy
- Privacy Law
- Internet Law
- Blockchain/Web3